Retro Thing

Star Trek: The Next Generation - Beaming To Earth In HD

This year will mark the 25th anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Not only was it the keystone of many, many years of new Trek (and renewed interest in TV sci-fi in general) on television, the series and its success in many ways re-defined our expectations of TV. When the series premiered in 1987, few believed that a costly non-network show could be popular. Each episode cost upwards of a million dollars, and you could see it on the screen with the many dazzling special effects that brought the future to life every week.

One way they cut costs was to shoot on 35mm film, but do their editing entirely on video. Special composited effects (adding phaser blasts, or putting visuals into the big viewscreen on the bridge set) were also realized using video techniques. Those video sourced effects were all locked in at SD quality, and with all of the editing also having been done at SD, I often wondered how they would re-release the series into an HD world.

A few years ago when Paramount "re-mastered" the original 60's series, their job was somewhat easier since all the material had been shot on film, edited on film, and special effects composited on film. The original 60's workflow was at a full 4K quality, so it was just a matter of digitizing those original master film prints. Paramount took the extra step of re-creating the shots of the Enterprise and updating some of the ropey effects they felt could use some polish, but the bulk of what we saw was just a direct copy off the original broadcast master reels.

So for the re-release of TNG, Paramount has to go back to the original camera negatives to digitize the footage, then re-edit every episode to create a new HD broadcast master. It's not an easy job, but it's made easier thanks to extensive records of takes that made it into final edits, and various other paperwork from the original production. The model shots were also shot on film, so those can be retained as-is. The only material that will need to be remanufactured are the composited elements I mentioned above, which today you could probably accomplish on your smartphone. Those scenes are thankfully not going to be upconverted from the original SD masters.

The visuals that once dazzled us in the 80's, will dazzle us again now. The first season's belabored plots and wooden acting that befuddled us then, will baffle us now. I'm teasing, of course. The show quickly found its footing, and became a modern TV classic. You can order a preview disc for $24.99 $14.99 (when you use the link below!) with the pilot film "Encounter At Farpoint", and two other favorite episodes, with the rest of season one to follow in 2012.

One note - if you poke around the message boards buzzing with this news (which I'm really, really not recommending), there is some misinformation going around about the release of this show in 16:9. While it's correct that the show was shot on 35mm film, the 35mm film frame is a more-or-less square aspect ratio (just like a roll of still photo film you've seen before). When movies are shot for a widescreen presentation using 35mm, they're using a special anamorphic lens, or possibly cropping the 35mm film frame - neither of which was in the plan for TNG. Any attempt to present TNG in a widescreen format would mean chopping off existing parts of the picture, and reframing every single shot. When you see the full frame 4:3 image of a TNG episode, you're seeing exactly what the director of photography wanted you to see. A 16:9 matte would mean seeing less of the picture.. not more.

link:
Pre-order "Encounter at Farpoint" +2 more eps in HD for only $15!

Pioneering Video Genius Ernie Kovacs - DVD Box Set

Long time readers of Retro Thing may have noticed that I'm a huge fan of Ernie Kovacs, one of television's earliest geniuses. You hear the word "genius" flung around a lot, but I use the word deliberately as we're still living in a TV world molded by his many innovations. Watching the long overdue 6 DVD Ernie Kovacs Collection box set, you'll be amazed at how many times you see Kovacs echoed in the offbeat TV comedy of a David Letterman (who names Kovacs as a hero, even hiring Kovacs' old announcer Bill Wendell for his NBC show), or a Conan O'Brien. Kovacs was first to lift the veil on the secret world of making TV, inviting viewers to peek on on behind the scenes nonsense, and having lots of fun even when things didn't quite work out the way they were supposed to.

Today is the 50th anniversary of Kovacs' untimely death, and were it not for the untiring efforts of his wife Edie Adams, his work would have disappeared too. She single-handedly rescued many of the master tapes that were destined for the demagnetizer. Kovacs' work has always been hard to find (a scant few VHS releases and a 2 DVD compilation that quickly went out of print), making this DVD box set a boon.

In the set you'll get extended clips from his morning show; Kovacs pioneered the first morning show ever, when his bosses at NBC saw how well the format worked they cancelled Ernie to put on a little thing called the Today Show. The set includes many of his favorite bits like the Nairobi Trio, Percy Dovetonsils, Miklos Molnar (a growling and surly Eastern European, decades before Borat),or how about the classic song "Sentimental Journey" brilliantly brought to life by an empty office...

The bulk of this material hasn't been seen since original airings of the show. All these rarities feel amazingly fresh even today (I recently spent a year launching a morning TV show, and I cribbed a lot of Kovacs). If you're a fan of TV, especially early TV... or you just like to laugh, this is a terrific set. I'll be commemorating the 50th anniversary of the loss of this under-sung genius by playing some of the discs from this set today. Yes, I'll be marvelling at the genius of Ernie Kovacs, but more importantly I'll be laughing too.

link:

Pick up the 6 DVD Ernie Kovacs Collection on Amazon, and help out Retro Thing!

Playskool Rockin' Robot - The Grinning Cassette Recorder

If there's a theme we encounter time and time again here on Retro Thing, it's the irrational emotional bond people form with retro tech... but this 80's (or 90's? This particular one is labeled 1991) tape recorder makes me a little uneasy. Is it just me, or is it almost like this kiddie cassette player is looking and grinning at us?

There have been lots of tape recorders (fewer these days, I suppose) made expressly for children. Usually these were just chunkier versions of regular adult tape recorders with giant colorful buttons. Playskool took kid-friendly design that extra step to create a funny faced recorder that my adult friends seem to take a shine to, even today.

As a budding junior audio engineer, I would have killed for a tape recorder with features like built-in AM/FM radio, and a hardwired mic for recording my own tapes as well as barking out my demands over the PA system. It's in this public address role that we saw the Rockin' Robot make an appearance in the first two Toy Story movies. Our lanky lead, Woody, used Mr. Mike (the recorder's stage name) to make speeches to the other characters.

Mr. Mike was even issued in non tape-recorder mini version as a Toy Story tie-in later in the 90's. The hard-to-find toy includes a voice-changer to turn you into any of several robots, which is very cool... but doesn't really explain the high prices either version of the toy seems to command on Ebay. I've seen this analog relic go for over a hundred dollars - which may be just enough to break my irrational emotional bond with this grimacing tape deck.

Star Wars Has Always Had A Lot To Answer For

The 70s were a decade of the gritty anti-hero in movies. Some film historians credit the success of Star Wars to audiences responding to the movie's "good guy" heroes and high adventure. 1977's blockbuster success influenced more than just movies - sci fi trappings beamed up in a big way everywhere you looked.

Sadly, it wasn't all good. Here's a clip from ITV's Kenny Everett Video Show - British comedy skits and pop music, if you don't remember. This wasn't shown an awful lot in the states, but as a pre-teen I was fascinated by the show's early video effects, music I'd never heard before, and the (quite controversial and underdressed) Hot Gossip dancers. Here they are with their own simply awful sci-fi musical tribute. See how many SF theme songs snippets you can spot in this 1978 video clip.

Epic Adventure: A New Game For The Atari 2600

Todd Holcomb writes, "Here's my new Atari 2600 game that's a follow-up to the classic Atari game, Adventure. Featuring all new enemies, castles, and mazes, it utilizes the Pitfall II engine to produce pretty graphics. It will soon be available in the AtariAge store. Check it out in the development thread at Atari Age—you'll need the latest version of Stella or Harmony cart to play."

Because the graphics are based on the Pitfall II engine, it really pushes the limits of the 2600. I would have loved a game like this back in the day. Todd plans to release Epic Adventure on cartridge in early 2012. It's like being back in 1982... except better.

Kodak On The Verge Of Becoming A Memory

You've probably heard the news that Kodak is preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Pundits around the world have been quick to declare that the company simply didn't embrace digital technology and fell out of step. However, I think there's more to it than that.

In actuality, Kodak was at the forefront of the digital revolution. One of the first portable digital cameras was cobbled together in their R&D facilities in 1975. The company released a lineup of digital point-and-shoots and has tens of thousands of digital photo printing kiosks installed across North America, ready to print stacks photos at the touch of the screen. They spent decades developing first-rate digital image sensors. They even launched the highly regarded Kodak Theater HD Player to let you view slide shows and videos on your TV in gloriously modern HD.

So what went wrong? Why aren't there lineups ten people deep to print photos of their latest pub crawl or cousin Sarah's Bat Mitzva?

The company isn't struggling because of a lack of digital know-how. They're struggling because our photography habits changed virtually overnight. As I commented in a thread on the Filmshooting forum:

The company did an excellent job of positioning themselves in the Kodak Memories business—use Kodak when you want a keepsake that you can hold onto for decades and share with your grand kids. But people simply don't use photography that way anymore.

These days, my wife snaps interesting and timely photos to share on Facebook. Those images are used to spark conversation and they have a very short half life. Tomorrow, it'll be something new.

The confluence of mobile phones with decent point-and-shoot capabilities and fast data connections makes it easy to beam images directly online, and there's simply no place for Kodak in the new business model. The shift is especially pronounced in the teen and young adult segment—they have Hipstamatic. It's instant, cheap and makes everything look retro cool.

Meanwhile, the Kodak photo kiosks at the local big box department store stand unused for hours on end. Yeah, someone will eventually come along and order an 8x10 enlargement or prints of Christmas morning for grandma, but it's definitely not a growth industry.

The Kodak story is a classic example of a mass technological shift. In this case, it's a double whammy—a seismic move away from film and paper photography, but also a social shift in how we perceive and share images.

What do you think? Has photography changed forever? Is there a place for Kodak in the 21st century?

Retrode 2: A Retro Gaming Adapter For PCs

I'm surprised no one cooked up the idea of the Retrode 2 game adapter sooner. It's a little box that allows you to attach real Nintendo Super NES and Sega Genesis cartridges and controllers to your computer.

Once everything is hooked up, you can access the program ROM and SRAM (for game saves) on the cartridges using an emulator. A maximum of 2 Genesis and 2 SNES controllers can be connected at once -- you can even use all four controllers at the same time for some wicked multi-player action. You don't even need cartridges to play if you already have ROM images loaded onto your PC.

Retrode 2 measures 162mm x 80mm x 42mm and retails for $85. The package includes a USB cable and instruction sheet, and the manufacturer promises driverless operation under any OS with any SNES or Genesis emulator.

All in all, this is a neat emulation solution for people who don't like the idea of scouring the dark underbelly of the Internet for illicit ROM collections.

Retrode 2 will be available in February 2012 from Everdrive in Germany and Stone Age Gamer in the USA.

Exquisite... What Is It? #001 - Early Hacked Phone

From time to time we like to march out a bit of retro tech that we have no idea about. It's a lot of fun for us to watch the discussion light up in the comments section of a post with guesses as to what it is we've found.

It used to take a lot more work/solder/toggle switches to jailbreak a phone, leaving it bare or your own purposes. Here's how retro telecom geniuses used to do it. This device looks like it started life as a rotary phone, but then got the deluxe accessory package. In place of the dial, we've got a perfectly fitting speaker with the Motorola logo. The handset has a red earpiece and microphone (with a particularly nasty red rubber earcup added). The receiver has a red momentary push-button near the earpiece. You can see the red & green indicator lights on top near the cradle as well.

Moving to the front, there are three toggle switches. A three position toggle dutifully DYMO-labelled "SQU", and two more marked "DIR" and "SPKR". There are also what look like two push-buttons, but I think they're lights as well. On the side is a serious looking "A.F. GAIN" knob, and in the back is a 1/4" jack.

I want to think that this may have come from the Motorola factory that's relatively close by, but I supposed Motorola could just be the brand of the speaker (which fits perfectly where the dial used to go). The phone is a standard Western Electric chassis (the phone I grew up with was a cousin to this one). It's a bit homebrew and cobbled together, but clearly by a pro. I doubt this was a commercial product, but nor do I think it's a HAM operator's afternoon's fun in the workshop.

Any ideas?

Making Dymo-mite Labels One Letter at a Time

If you scan the ads inserted in your Sunday paper in the coming weeks — you do subscribe to a Sunday newspaper, right? — you'll notice many stores holding sales on organizational gear like storage bins. I assume that's either because people buy a lot of that stuff after receiving too many Christmas presents or because "getting organized" is a common New Year's resolution. Either way, it's fair to say we're entering the organization season. And if there's one thing a competent organizer needs, it's a labelmaker.

Dymo has been making and selling labelmakers since 1958. The company started out making them for industrial and business clients. (In its old ads, Dymo said its reps would happily come to your place of business and label "any six items" to show off how useful the labels were.) The technology is dead simple: Select a letter on the font wheel, squeeze the trigger and the raised letter is pressed into the malleable plastic or metal substrate. The plastic would turn white from the stress of being stamped, making the label easy to read.

The firm lays claim to introducing the first personal labelmaker and it democratized the gizmos with inexpensive embossers. It sold a range of machines, from simple plastic ones for home use to metal "executive" models with carrying cases and multiple font wheels. Other companies got into the game and soon seemingly everyone had the ability to punch out labels for things that clearly needed no marking. (I mean, did anyone actually put their phone number on their sunglasses?) In the 1970s, the company sold 7 million embossers per year.

Though they might seem slightly antiquated in this age of customizable print-your-own labels, I have noticed that embossed labels are still relevant. The Dallas Cowboys continue to use the labels to denote which helmet belongs to whom. You can get fonts that look like the embossed labels, so that your next PowerPoint presentation can have that extra pop. And of course the embossing font motif pops up in logos: The NBC show "Chuck" uses it, presumably because the labels were once a staple of retail nametags, and the Paramount Vantage movie imprint relies on it too.

Dymo is now a unit of Newell Rubbermaid and primarily a seller of printer-style labelmakers with keyboards and screens and a zillion options. But it still makes a couple of embossers, including one that goes for about $10. They seem aimed at scrapbookers now, though the company also manufactured one recently for kids that actually spoke the selected letter. You also can also find vintage ones without much trouble. (If you're looking for old ones, a vertical font wheel is a nice option.)

I find them fun to use but also finicky and occasionally laborious. My model seems to regard the font baseline as mere suggestion; spinning the font wheel in same direction sometimes helps. The key to consistent lettering is even finger pressure on the trigger, which is a challenge. Then again, those innate errors are definitely part of the charm. And surely charm is what you're after when you label your new storage bins.

Worst Retro Joystick Ever?

The Vic 20 computer made chunky 8 bit waves in the history of video gaming. Commodore offered a joystick that was an albino version of the ol' Atari CX-40 [see smaller photo]. The C64 hit the scene later, and became a gaming classic despite Commodore's issue of possibly the crappiest joystick ever - the notorious 1311.

An initial look at the Commodore 1311 might make you think it's got some interesting ideas in the design. It's smaller profile fits in the hand a bit better, and that centered wide fire button seems like it would work for lefties too. The your eyes fall on the triangular joystick. Wait, what?

Corners on a joystick? Three angles to dig into your vulnerable hand during a marathon gaming session? Why not just put razor blades in there? It doesn't just look nasty, it IS nasty. I remember being really excited when my best friend got a C64, and tried really hard not to weep at the hideous pain from this joystick. Oh yeah, and that narrow profile thing is the bunk too. I find diminished stability, making me push harder, bringing the pain faster.

Retro gamers have strong opinions of which is the worst joystick ever, but you haven't been to the front lines until you've suffered through this gaming abomination.